Should carriers allow for a color swap?

One thing that I’ve noticed over the years, is that our phones have become another way to differentiate ourselves. I’m not talking about using one mobile operating system over another. This time around, I’m looking more at the physical side of things. But, as it stands right now, the best way to really stand out amongst the crowd is through accessories, like cases. While manufacturers are known to make some colorful devices, it’s still not the norm quite yet.

Releasing a phone shouldn’t be a tricky slope, but it certainly can be. Dealing with exclusives is hard enough, but sometimes the customer base can be pretty vocal in their dismay at certain decisions that manufacturers, and even more so the carriers, make. Releasing a device in one color, for example, and then a month or two later launching it in other, sometimes more unique, colors.

I say it’s tricky because there are some people who won’t even notice that their phone was launched in another color, whether that’s because they are perfectly content with their purchased phone and won’t look, or because they shoved their loved device into a case. On the flip-side, though, there are those who will notice, and may not like the fact that when they bought the phone, there were only two color options.

I’m looking at the Galaxy S III here. When it launched back in July for Verizon, there were two options: blue and white. Now, having two color options is probably good enough, and it’s certainly better than having only one to choose from, but it’s only good for as long as it lasts. The Galaxy S III launched at the end of July on Verizon’s network, and now, here we are at the beginning of October, and we’re looking at the release of two brand new colors for the handset: brown and black.

I’ll just come right out and say that I like that brown one quite a bit. It’s different, and yet still subtle in its own way. I think that works for the Galaxy S III, in the same way that having a wide, and usually bright, variety of colors works for Windows Phone. I wouldn’t be all that happy if I had purchased the white Galaxy S III, and then less than three months later found out that another, and in my eyes, better color option had become available.

The easy fix to this is simple: manufacturers should launch more device colors. Look at HTC and Nokia, where there are plenty of different color options to choose from right out of the gate. Or, offer up exchangeable covers for phones, which could open up the possibilities even further.

Or, and this one is a little crazy, I know, but maybe carriers could offer up a “color swap” option. There would have to be plenty of bullet points with something like this, but it would be a pretty cool gesture from corporations that seem altogether detached from the customer base. So, for example, if someone purchased a phone in late July, and a new color option was released less than three months later, the customer could have the option to swap devices.

Now, I think the first bullet point would have to be that the device you are swapping would have to be in perfect condition. No blemishes of any kind, and you’d have to have the screen protector removed before swapping it (if you put one on, of course). And, while it would be great to just be able to trade in your used device for a brand new one, that obviously wouldn’t work. So, maybe that restocking fee that so many places charge could be used as a “swapping charge” instead, in that particular case.

I know people who have paid more for cases, so it wouldn’t be that ridiculous.

You could only swap once, though. That’d be part of the deal.

Wishful thinking, I know, but I still think it would be pretty cool if carriers offered that option, especially when there are new colors released so close to the original device’s launch.

Would you swap your device, given the parameters, to get your hands on a new color? Would you buy the black or brown Galaxy S III? Let me know, Dear Reader!

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